Friday, July 28, 2006

Motion (Words and) Pictures

We're in the heat of movie season; perfect time to move into another type of writing.

Screenwriting is often thought of as being all about the spoken word. That's a part of it. But according to screenwriter Khris Baxter, "Scripts are more about visual storytelling. Good dialogue is needed, but the visual aspect is the core."

A script is a blueprint to a movie. When you watch movies, everything you see -- the location, the position of characters, the time of day -- was described in the script.

The best way to learn more about screenwriting is to read scripts. And Khris pointed me to one of the best places to do that. Visit DailyScript at the link below, and you'll find a number of scripts, some in various drafts, some never produced. Whether you're an aspiring screenwriter, a movie buff, or an interested reader, check out this screenplay library.

Friday, July 14, 2006

Featured Novelists Announced

The still-expanding list of authors scheduled to present at the 2006 National Book Festival has been released. More than 70 authors will appear at the festival, held on the National Mall in Washington DC.

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Wolfe on Steinbeck

When Tom Wolfe spoke about the state of the American Novel at last year's National Book Festival in DC, he was adamant that the state was not getting better. As reported in earlier entries, Wolfe believes that today's American novelists -- especially the young -- have nothing to say. He also described what he considers the Europeanization of the American novel.

"America has been Europeanized. America believes that the novel should be psychological instead of being about something. But this is an astonishing, unexplored country -- go to it!"

He explained that many great American novelists were actually reporters. "Take John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. He worked as a reporter to get his material. He needed to be a reporter for the material and exposure to the types of characters and situations he was writing about."

Tom Wolfe encourages today's novelists to get the scoop before attempting to master the craft.

Visit Tom's bookshelf at the link.http://www.tomwolfe.com/bookshelf.html

Monday, July 03, 2006

Fictional Freedom

This Independence Day, citizens across America will celebrate the 230th birthday of the United States of America with festivals, family, fireworks and fiction. Join in the celebration by visiting Coloquio and enjoying the latest installment of "Freedom."

"Freedom (Part 3)" was published just in time for the 4th of July and is available at the link below. Celebrate "Freedom" today!